


In Another Life

by inlovewithimpossibility



Series: cerys' s8 episode codas [6]
Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Annual Oliver Queen Fever Dream, Episode: s8e06 Reset, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-22
Updated: 2019-11-22
Packaged: 2021-02-25 20:49:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,967
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21521707
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/inlovewithimpossibility/pseuds/inlovewithimpossibility
Summary: This world has his head spinning and he’s constantly alert for whatever it might throw at him next. He’s trying to stay vigilant in case another figure from his past appears or something else throws him for a loop.He never, in a million years, would have expected what comes out of Dinah’s mouth next, however.“That was Rene, he said that Zoe needs to get some homework done so could you collect Mia? You’re so out of it anyway that you might as well take the rest of the day off.”[8x06 spec AU within which Oliver's alternate reality brings him face to face with a figure he never expected to see again]
Relationships: Oliver Queen & Mia Smoak, Oliver Queen/Felicity Smoak
Series: cerys' s8 episode codas [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1518755
Comments: 28
Kudos: 185





	In Another Life

**Author's Note:**

> This isn't in any way an actual spec, but the thought came to me after I saw the 8x06 promo and I had to write it. I hope you enjoy! Kudos and comments are always appreciated!

This world… it’s crazy.

Things are so different, but at the same time, so similar.

Oliver thinks he should be used to such occurrences, the amount of times that something like this has happened. Hallucinations, alien abductions leading to dream constructed worlds…

Who is he kidding? This will never feel normal or route. His world is based on the streets, fighting on the ground level with his body as his only tool. No matter how many run-ins he has with the supernatural or the supposedly unexplainable, Oliver knows it will never be something he can consider normal.

“Oliver?”

The sound of Dinah’s voice startles him and Oliver is jolted back to the SCPD precinct where he’s stood. That’s something that hasn’t changed in this world. Whilst Quentin is Captain here, Dinah is still dedicated to her role within the force and she has a presiding presence over her fellow detectives at the SCPD.

“Hmm?” Oliver questions, blinking as he tries to force himself to concentrate. This world has his head spinning and he’s constantly alert for whatever it might throw at him next. He’s trying to stay vigilant in case another figure from his past appears or something else throws him for a loop.

He never, in a million years, would have expected what comes out of Dinah’s mouth next, however.

“That was Rene, he said that Zoe needs to get some homework done so could you collect Mia? You’re so out of it anyway that you might as well take the rest of the day off.”

_Wait…_

“I’m sorry… pardon?” He manages to ask, the questions springing to his mind one by one as he processes what his teammate is saying.

_Mia._

Oh my god.

“Mia? Your daughter? Goodness, Oliver, I know you miss Felicity but you’re not normally this out of it when she’s away on a business trip.” Dinah smirks, rolling her eyes as she crosses her arms across her chest and Oliver blinks blindly for a moment.

Felicity…

Mia…

“I… right, of course… Mia. My daughter.” He nods, feeling as if there is just so much information whirling around in his brain. Is this Mia his Mia? How old is she? What is she like?

“Yup. Are you sure you’re okay?” Dinah questions slowly and Oliver takes a deep breath, forcing himself to try and appear normal.

“I’m fine. I’ll go get her now.”

“Then go home. You obviously need the rest of the day off. Rest, I’ll explain everything to Captain Lance.” Dinah smiles, looking at him in concern and Oliver tries his best smile in return but it’s truly a weak attempt.

“Okay, right. Thank you.” Oliver nods, turning to walk towards the door.

“Car keys?” Dinah calls after him and Oliver just has time to swing around to catch the keyring that the detective throws his way.

“Yes, thank you.”

There’s a car seat in the back seat of his familiar, yet just too clean, Sedan. It’s the one he and Felicity picked out months ago, after having researched the pros and cons of different styles painstakingly to ensure they had the design that would best keep their baby girl safe. The thing is… the one that is strapped into his Sedan as he knows it at the cabin is black. This one is a deep purple colour.

The neighbourhood surrounding Rene’s house is cleaner than Oliver remembers. There’s less litter and the buildings look less rundown. It’s almost as if everything’s had a filter placed over it and it’s completely throwing Oliver for a loop. He’s in an utter daze as he pulls up and heads to the door, it swinging open before he can raise a hand to knock.

“Hey man. Thanks. I’m so sorry we had to bail early but Peanut only just let me know that she has an entire project due in tomorrow.” Rene sighs as he ushers Oliver into the small house. It’s almost exactly the same as Oliver remembers with its wooden features and the round table in the centre.

What stands out is the temporary crib set up in the corner with an extremely familiar looking baby sat within it.

Oliver cannot stop the tears that spring up as he looks at his baby. This is her… this is Mia. Somehow, despite the changes, he and Felicity still created the same little miracle as she’s every bit as perfect as he remembers.

“It… it’s fine.” He finally manages to reply to Rene, blinking back the waterworks before he breath catches at the sight of the teenager stood by the temporary crib. In light of the recent news that his kids brought back with them from 2040, the sight of the Zoe that he knows has him surprisingly emotional. “Hi Zoe.”

“Hi Mr. Queen. Have you heard from William recently? He video called me the other day but you know what he’s like about answering his phone.” The teenager bemoans with a roll of her eyes and Oliver freezes.

He doesn’t know anything about William within this world. Zoe’s question is the first time he’s heard his son’s name mentioned. He doesn’t know where he is, if he’s safe, and that sends him into a spiral that he doesn’t particularly wish to allow himself to fall too deeply into.

“Mr. Queen?”

“Um, yeah, he’s… he’s good.” Oliver manages to choke out and Zoe grins, nodding her head.

“Glad to hear it. He was saying he’s coming to visit you guys at some point soon so I’ll look forward to seeing him then. Until then, I’m very grateful that I get to spend some time with this little cutie.” Zoe giggles as she bends over the crib and Oliver watches in pure amazement as she lifts Mia into her arms.

It’s a lot of information to receive in such a short space of time. Wherever William is, he comes to visit him… and Felicity? She seems to be around with Dinah’s reference to her business trip right now. Have they managed to do it in this world? Have Mia and joint custody of William and stay in the city? That is… it’s all he’s wanted for so long.

“Da!”

_Oh…_

Mia, the perfect little angel that she is, is reaching towards him from Zoe’s arms with the most perfect smile on her face. Smiling was something she had only just mastered when he left. To hear her speak essentially his name, to hear his baby girl call him dad…

It’s everything.

“Wow hoss, blondie was not wrong about the emotional thing. Have you cried every day since the munchkin was born?” Rene’s voice brings Oliver back down again and the teasing tone within in voice rubs Oliver just the wrong way as he spins to glare at him. His teammate immediately raises his hands in surrender, but there’s still a telling smirk pulling at his lips. “I’m kidding, I’m kidding.”

“Go on, baby girl, go to your daddy.” Zoe prompts and before Oliver can fully process what’s happening, his arms are wrapping around the baby. His shaking hands immediately still, his muscle memory and instincts rushing back to him.

Even though it feels like a lifetime, it really hasn’t been that long since this was his every day. This was his routine, his everything, and holding Mia again is something he’s dreamt of every night since he left.

And he knows this isn’t her. This isn’t his Mia, it’s not the same baby he said goodbye to two months ago and it’s certainly not the adult daughter he’s been delighted to grow to know over the past few weeks. But she’s still _a_ Mia.

After Oliver was properly introduced to the idea of the multiverse, he realised that no matter how different they were, he would probably be slightly in love with every version of Felicity Smoak he could encounter. He thinks the same theory might apply here.

This isn’t his Mia but to her, he’s her Oliver, and that’s…

“Mr. Queen, are you alright?” Zoe questions and Oliver takes a deep breath, blinking back his tears as he forces a smile onto his face as he raises his eyes to look at his son’s friend. He finds it less difficult that he has in recent weeks to smile, the feeling of his daughter in his arms is filling him with that contentedness that consumed him during those months in the cabin. He’s experienced it briefly in the most recent weeks, when he’s hugged William or finally made a breakthrough in connecting with the adult Mia, but he’d be lying if this didn’t feel like something else entirely.

“Yes…” He chokes for a moment before clearing his throat and adjusting Mia in his arms so that he can take the diaper bag that Zoe is holding out towards him. “Thank you for looking after her. I’ll leave you to your homework.”

“It’s no trouble. She’s a really cool baby. I’ll gladly procrastinate on my homework to look after her again.” Zoe grins at him and Oliver can’t stop the chuckle that bubbles out of him at her words. It’s quickly followed by a pang of regret when he remembers that Zoe, who is such a light, has her thread cut short. He’ll always be grateful to the little girl for her integral role in helping William adjust when he first moved to Star City to live with Oliver. Zoe was a friend to his son and made him feel at home when William felt like he had no one else. Oliver can’t help like feeling if he didn’t disappear, then maybe Zoe’s fate wouldn’t be quite so bleak.

“We shall not be procrastinating on homework to babysit.” Rene reminds his daughter and Zoe huffs, looking at her dad with a face that tells Oliver she’s fast headed towards her teenaged years.

“Whatever…” She states with a roll of her eyes and Oliver can’t resist smirking at the incredulous look it gains from Rene. The girl’s expression softens however, as she steps up to Oliver, clasping Mia’s hand in hers. “Bye baby girl. Yeah, bye bye. I’ll see you soon! You be good for your daddy and your mama will be home before you know it.”

The teenager grips the baby’s hand, wiggling it around in a waving motion and Oliver has to blink back his tears once again when Mia lets out the most delightful little giggle. His heart tugs immediately at the gentle and innocent sound and he’s gutted as the reminder of what this innocent, ball of light grows into strikes his memory.

Mia is everything he hoped she’d be when she grows up. She’s beautiful just like her mother, she thinks on her feet and she has such a wonderful awareness of who she is and what she wants to be. Looking down at her as an infant now, however, Oliver’s heart clenches as he remembers all the clear hints she’s given him of how much horror she’s also been exposed to.

It’s not just the obviously painful things either. Whilst the reminders that she never knew him or the rough life she’s lived are heart wrenching, the small things that even Mia doesn’t realise have absolutely gutted him over the past few weeks. Her excitement over getting on a plane reminded him of how she never left the small town of Bloomfield. The jokes she makes with William about their mother remind him that Felicity is really the only person she knew for her entire childhood.

Being faced with his baby girl as an infant once more is a stark reminder of everything that he failed to protect her from before she grew into the adult he’s learning to know now.

Because he wasn’t there.

Because he died.

He stumbles through farewells with Rene and Zoe, his attention entirely on the baby in his arms as he makes his way to the car. Felicity joked, just after Mia was born, that she had never seen him be so careful with anything in his life. She had said it was like watching a baby giraffe learn to walk, the way he was so tentatively and careful in holding her.

He thinks, right now however, might completely outweigh that tenderness.

This was something he never thought he’d be able to do with his children. To pick her up from a babysitter’s and take her home. Strap her into the car and drive, just the two of them. It’s one of the many small things that he supposes lots of other parents take for granted that he’s lamented over losing in the months since he’s been separated from his wife and daughter.

This isn’t his Mia.

He has to remind himself of that as he carefully straps her into the car seat. It’s so hard to think of when he remembers that this is all he wants to be able to do with his Mia.

She falls asleep on the drive back to the apartment, her soft little breaths and the angelic reflection of her sleeping face almost distracting him from the road one too many times. More than once, the car behind has to sound their horn at him when the stop lights change because his attention has been fully on watching Mia in the rear-view.

He thought he was being careful as he put Mia in the car but it’s nothing compared to the way he cautiously removes her car seat from the backseat and carries her into the apartment building.

He’s terrified that every little sound might wake her, the beep of the elevator or the announcement of Felicity’s security system that allows them into the familiar and yet vastly different apartment, but Mia keeps on sleeping through. It’s another reminder that this isn’t the baby he knows. His Mia is a terrible sleeper, waking at the slightest of noises.

The apartment is like everything in this world.

Its layout is exactly the same with the large counter dominating the space but the walls are painted a pale green instead of grey and it’s littered with tools that never made it to this apartment. The necessities for caring for an infant are scattered across the home and Oliver quickly finds the nursery, painting in a pale blue rather than the green he and Felicity picked out back in Bloomfield in his world.

He transfers Mia into her crib, amazed at her ability to continue to snooze even as he jostles her tiny body around. She sprawls on her back, her tiny chest rising and falling and there’s the faintest hint of a smile on her face as she continues to sleep on, unaware of her father beginning to cry as he stares down at her.

Whatever this world is, why ever it is that he’s here, he’s so eternally grateful for this chance. It might not be his Mia but holding her in his arms, brushing his fingers across her light dusting of hair, and bending over her crib to kiss her soft forehead are all novelties he never thought he would get the chance to do again.

Oliver doesn’t know how long he stays there, watching her little chest rise and fall. She’s so beautiful. Just everything that matters in the world.

It’s the glimpse of a photo that finally distracts him.

There, hanging above Mia’s crib, is perhaps the most beautiful image Oliver thinks he has ever seen. Felicity, as beautiful as ever, is sat on the rocking chair he can see in the corner of the room with Mia on her lap. The baby doesn’t look too much smaller than she is now and Oliver supposes this must be recent. Oliver himself flanks one side of his girls, his arm protectively around Felicity’s shoulder and the other holding Mia’s tiny hand as he smiles proudly at the camera. On the other side is the figure who rounds everything off, the one thing that had been missing all those months in the cabin.

William.

His teenage son sits opposite to Oliver but he’s not smiling at the camera. He’s bent over Felicity, his face split in the middle of a laugh as he holds Mia’s tiny feet up. The baby’s attention is fully on her older brother, also in the midst of a laugh.

The tears fall much faster and harder now.

Why is he here? What does it all mean? Has he replaced a version of himself? Is this an alternate earth or a hallucination of some kind?

He needs to find out.

He looks over the baby one last time, making sure she’s still sleeping, and he swipes the baby monitor next to the crib before he heads out into the wider apartment in search of clues.

He doesn’t find much that can help. There’s a lot of familiar photos, ones of he and Felicity from their travels, lots of William, and plenty he remembers taking of Mia and Felicity but the settings are different. There’s a lot of unfamiliar ones too. Pictures of Mia and William are everywhere, their children, _together._

It seems if this is an alternate earth, it’s one that only differs in the very recent past. The timeline until just before Oliver went to prison appears to be mainly intact. So where does that leave him now?

He skims past the door to his and Felicity’s old room, the memory too fresh and painful, and heads for the fridge.

There, stuck to the metal with a magnet of William’s school photo, is the recognisable slant of his wife’s handwriting. Oliver reaches for it with shaky hands.

_Oliver,_

_Don’t pout too much, I won’t be gone that long!_

_I know you already know this but I won’t feel better until I’ve written it down so humour me, please?_

_There should be enough milk in the fridge to last the four days but there’s formula in the cupboard if you do run out. Remember that Mia likes to walk around if she’s not settling and please don’t hesitate to call me if you think she might need to hear my voice. Don’t forget to text William on Thursday morning, he has that big test at school._

_I know you don’t like to admit that you like junk food, but I hid a packet of your favourite chips at the back of the cupboard._

_I’ll be back before you know it!_

_All my love, to the farthest reaches of the universe and back,_

_Felicity x_

Oliver stumbles back, the paper almost slipping from his fingers until he grasps it tightly. His eyes widen as he realises that he’s crumpled the edge of the sheet and he desperately tries to right it, not wanting to have messed with a piece of Felicity.

Oliver can hear her voice as he reads the note once more. There’s the spark of her worry in the sections with his instructions and then the amusement when she speaks of the treat she’s left. He can hear the warmth that he’s long associated with his wife as she spreads her love and he allows it to surround him now, stood in this familiar apartment with the sound of his daughter’s soft breaths coming through the baby monitor he’s holding.

This isn’t his life but he so desperately wants it to be. This is his every wish. He truly doesn’t know what’s wrong with the picture.

The beeping of an alarm is what draws his attention, his instincts warning him to be wary as he heads back into the main room of the apartment. There’s the sound of feet outside the door as the alarm grows louder and Oliver just has time to swipe a knife from the block sat atop the counter before the door bursts open with a loud bang.

Oliver moves quickly to reach the assailant, acting purely on instinct, and he’s almost reached the intruder when a singular word makes him stop in his tracks.

“Dad!”

He knows that voice.

_Mia._

Oliver blinks, trying to clear his vision that is still blurry from the tears, and he manages to make out the sight of his daughter. _His_ daughter. Adult Mia.

And just like that, with one small word, everything comes crashing down around him.

The knife falls to the ground and Oliver stumbles backwards, reaching for the counter so he doesn’t crumble to the ground.

“Dad? Are you okay?” Mia asks, her voice frantic as she moves lithely towards him, tucking herself under his arm to hold him up. Oliver tries to resist putting his weight on her but he’s too tired and she’s extremely persistent.

“Mia… I…” He mumbles and his daughter frowns up at him, the confusion and concern all over her face.

“Dad? Come on, we need to go. We need to get back to our world,” She insists, trying to tug him towards the door.

“Mia, I… I can’t…” He tells her, his heart clenching as she slips forward and out of his arms. He can’t do this, say goodbye to her again, whatever version of her the baby in the other room is, but he also knows he can’t stay here.

But god, he wants to.

This world, wherever and whatever it is, is all he wants, and he wishes, just for once, that he might get to be selfish and stay.

Just for a few days? Linger and see his wife when she gets home from her business trip? Get a visit from his son for the weekend?

After all he’s been through, is that really too much to ask?

“What do you mean you can’t? Dad come on, you know this is wrong and William said he could only keep the portal open for so long!” Mia insists, reaching back for him again and Oliver sighs, not budging. As strong as Mia is, she’s still significantly smaller than him and he knows many a tactic to ensure that she will not be able to make him budge.

“No, I do. I just…”

He doesn’t how what he’s going to say, how he might explain this, but he doesn’t have to. Mia, the infant, not the one in front of him, chooses the perfect moment to awaken from her nap in the almightiest of cries.

The sound has her adult counterpart freezing in her tracks and she looks to Oliver slowly, her face an expression of complete shock.

“Oh. Is that…?” She questions but trails off before she can finish.

“You.” Oliver completes for her, swallowing the large lump in his throat. “Can you just…?”

Mia looks at him baffled for a moment as he gestures to the seating area but she settles very slowly onto the arm of the sofa. Oliver watches her for a long moment, equally as baffled as she by the situation they’ve found themselves in, before he heads back to the nursery where the infant Mia is wriggling, her face scrunched up as fat tears roll down her cheeks.

“Oh baby girl, scary to wake up alone, huh?” He can’t resist asking as he immediately swoops her out of the crib and into his arms. The baby curls into him, relaxing slightly as she cuddles close but she still continues to cry. Oliver tries his best to rock her but she seems to be having none of it, clutching his t-shirt in her little fist.

Clutching her tightly, he walks back out towards the main area of the apartment, his memory having being jostled by Felicity’s words on the fridge. Baby Mia calms a little but continues to sniffle as they enter the room where the adult Mia is.

She’s stood and Oliver watches her for a moment. She’s taking in the room and Oliver can see that it’s having a similar effect on her as it did with him. He can see the tears starting to form in her eyes, her vulnerability immediately making him want to scoop her into his arms as well.

“Mia…”

She whirls around to look at him, her eyes widening as she takes in the infant version of herself in his arms.

“Dad…” She sighs, her shoulders slumping as she looks between the infant and him with a shake of her head.

“I… I don’t know.”

Oliver cannot think of anything else to say. He thought Mia and William’s appearance in 2019 threw him for a loop but landing in this world that seems utterly perfect is something else entirely.

“Dad, this place… it’s not real. I can’t remember what William said exactly but the drug they gave you… Dad, we’re in a simulation that your brain created. He said that little things might be wrong, where the drug has had to fill in the details, and that was how you would know.” Mia steps towards him slowly, looking at him gently. She’s obviously as utterly baffled as he is but she’s clearly also trying to tread carefully because she can see how much this is messing with him.

“I, no…” Oliver stumbles, looking down at the baby in his arms. She looks so much the baby he said goodbye to far too recently and yet so long ago.

“That’s not me, Dad.” Mia tells him, her voice calm despite her harsh words.

“But she…”

“She’s not real.” Mia insists and Oliver feels his body go utterly slack except for his hold on the baby.

He knows that Mia is right.

He has since he arrived here.

This isn’t real, this isn’t his world, things are wrong, even if it seems like they’re right.

Quentin’s death is something he’s come to terms with. Seeing him again has certainly thrown him for a loop but Oliver can also see that his presence here is wrong.

It’s different with Baby Mia and the clues around the apartment.

How can a world where he gets to raise his kids with the love of his life be wrong?

“Dad, please…”

Mia’s voice grows more desperate and looking up at her sends him into another spiral completely.

This woman in front of him is his Mia. She’s his daughter, the perfect mix of him and her mother. Everything she’s been through, all the hardships that he may have had a part in causing, they have made her into the hero she is today. And as tempting as it is to stay here, to wait to see Felicity and William and take the selfish route for once, he knows that he can’t.

His Mia needs him. His William needs him.

They have a job to do and he needs to make sure that they complete it without either of them getting hurt.

“I can’t just leave her here. Even if this will all disappear once we leave, it wouldn’t be right.” He swallows heavily, looking over at Mia who slumps in relief at him finally seeming to listen. “Where’s the portal?”

“By the station.” Mia confirms and Oliver nods. The idea of having to say goodbye to Mia, any version of her, again is awful but he forces himself to not think about it as he collects the car seat again and places Baby Mia within it.

Both versions of Mia stay silent as they drive back over towards the station and Oliver is grateful for it. He has no idea what he might say to his adult daughter and if Baby Mia was crying, he knows this would be ten times harder.

Mia promises to stay out of sight by the exit as Oliver lifts the car seat out of the back seat and walks towards the captain’s office. His legs feel like lead and it’s every bit as hard as this was the first time around.

“Oliver?” Quentin frowns as he notices the figure in the door and Oliver takes a deep breath,

“Can you just watch her for a few minutes?”

“I was told you took the rest of the day off…”

“Quentin, please.”

“Okay. C’mere baby girl.”

“Can I just…” Oliver asks and Quentin looks at him oddly but gestures to the car seat as he steps back. The father sighs and lifts the small baby into his arms, holding her close to his chest as he whispers into the soft wisps of hair on her head. “I love you so much, Mia-Bear. You’re everything to me. Never forget that, baby. I love you.”

He can’t stop the tears as he hands the baby over to Quentin with shaky arms.

This isn’t his Mia.

This isn’t his world.

He has to keep reminding himself of that fact but it doesn’t seem to be making this any easier.

“Oliver, are you…?” Quentin frowns, looking at him with concern.

“Please just look after her.” Oliver manages to gasp out and Quentin’s frown deepens but he nods, adjusting the baby in his arms until she’s fully secure within them.

“With my life.” He promises and the conviction in his voice gives Oliver the strength to lean forward and brush a final kiss against the soft forehead of his baby girl.

He can’t see the walk back out to the parking lot but the minute he steps outside, his Mia is there, bouncing nervously on her feet.

“Dad?”

“Let’s go home.” He tells her as he swallows down the sobs that threaten to push their way out.

Mia nods and Oliver follows her round to the portal. As she steps towards it, Mia reaches out behind her with her hand, offering one of the only pieces Mia-initiated affection he’s experienced since she and her brother landed 20 years in the past.

Oliver walks forward and slips his hand into hers, the tears blocking his vision as he allows his daughter to pull him back through to his world.


End file.
